Got Unused Meds?

The safest way to trash leftover drugs.

by Norine Dworkin-McDaniel

Photograph: Michael Balderas

Medicine cabinet full of outdated drugs? Dispose of them safely through the Take Away Environmental Return Program, which was started by the medical-waste-management firm Sharps Compliance. Get a prepaid mailing envelope from a participating pharmacy (listed at sharpsinc.com/locations) and fill it with unused over-the-counter or prescription meds. (Controlled substances such as OxyContin will not be accepted.) The drugs will be shipped to Sharps, where they are incinerated—still in their mailers—under licensed law-enforcement supervision.